More 'Words'...

This edition of 'Words Of The Week' is dedicated to Hubby.

Here are a few random-but-necessary tidbits about this treasure of a man:

Hubby is amazingly handsome, wonderfully tall, extremely talented (he's a very skilled and soulful pianist), kind hearted, tough as nails (he holds several black belts in various styles of martial arts, and to varying degrees), has brown, curly hair and kind, green eyes that have the ability to reduce me to a blubbering, sappy fool. Hubby is, quite literally, my best friend. Anyone who knows me can attest to the fact that I've never been the kind of girl who has close girlfriends. I have had maybe two close girlfriends in my lifetime, one from early childhood and one from my formative years; the latter of which I still keep in touch with, though only on a semi-annual basis. So, when I proclaim that Hubby is my best friend, I honestly mean it. I can tell this man anything. Hubby can actively participate in discussions with me on the most girliest of topics, all the while bravely and unflinchingly fighting his natural male instinct to run away screaming. Also, he never gets grossed out or squeamish when I go on about the wretchedness of "that time of the month". Instead, he calmly allows me to bitch and vent until I run out of steam or pass out from hyperventilating -whichever happens to occur first. He is a fabulous listener; with this man, I never have to censor my true, raw feelings and opinions on any given subject the way we all reluctantly feel we should do in public - and I have some VERY strong feelings and opinions. He even likes to go shopping with me. Seriously. He says he likes to watch me shop, that he thinks my facial expressions are cute and adorable, especially when I'm buying something. I am not making this up (how could I?), and no, he is not gay. Call it "the honeymoon period", call it "newlywed bliss", call it what you will. He is, in fact, the perfect man!

Another thing about Hubby - he's a Limey. That is, he's British! Yes, that's right ladies, Hubby has a very attractive British accent. I am a lucky, lucky girl! So, for this week's 'Words', we're going to look at some East London Slang, or Cockney Rhyming Slang, if you will. Now, Hubby is not actually from London; he's from the North West, nearer to Manchester in a region called Lancashire. I do realize there is a whole Lancashire dialect and slang as well, however I've not performed the proper amount of research on that specific idiom as of yet. Research on that will, I'm afraid, require hours and hours of alone time with Hubby, carefully picking his brain and coaxing forth his memories of old, as I want to make sure I get as much accurate information as possible in order to intelligently inform you all on the topic.

So for now, in the spirit of all things British, it's Cockney Slang. If some of you are not familiar with Cockney Slang, it's all based on rhyming. The more bizarre the rhyme, the better, as it is supposed to be a bit like speaking in secret code.

Ready? Here we go:


NICK COTTON (adj): Rotten, as in "It's all gone a bit Nick Cotton."

BENDY FLEX (noun): Sex, as in "Just going for a bit of Bendy."

ENGLISH LIT (noun): Shit, as in "I'm off for an English Lit."

FRED ASTAIRE (noun): Hair, as in "You 'ad your Fred done?"

SMASH AND GRAB (noun): Cab, as in "I'm off down the pub, I'll get a Smash home."

(courtesy of www.cockneyrhymingslang.co.uk)

I challenge you all to use these little gems in your everyday language, and report back to me with your findings.

Until next time, friends!

Fresh, New WORDS OF THE WEEK:

What a lovely Monday it is here in Boston, overcast, rainy, and cool...a welcome reprieve from the hot, humid summer days. I usually love hot and humid, but I have noticed in the last year or so that I no can no longer tolerate 90 degree weather. I'm not sure why. Maybe it's because I've been living in Boston for too long and have forgotten my Southern roots. Maybe it's because I walk or take the T everywhere I go, and don't have the luxury of traveling in an air conditioned car. Or, maybe it's because I am paranoid that my arms aren't skinny enough to wear tank tops. Whatever the reason, I was pleasantly surprised when I woke up this morning to the sound of light rain and a cool breeze brushing over my face from the window next to our bed. I couldn't have been happier to pull on a long sleeve, cotton knit shirt, slip into my comfy jeans, and lace up my bouncy, air-cushioned sneakers. Not that I want Winter or even Autumn to roll around yet, absolutely not. It's just nice not having to stand, sweating in the oven of the city, while waiting for the T to finally come by and whisk off me to work, is all.

Anyhoo! On to the Words! I've discovered two very useful ones today:

1. Sycophant: (noun) a self seeking, servile flatterer; fawning parasite

2. Louche: (adj) shady, devious; of questionable morality

Word #1 was chosen simply for it's meaning, and therefore, it's usefulness. There is an over-population of this type of person trolling about, and I'm thrilled to learn there is such a specific and all-encompassing term for them! Hooray! Word #2 was chosen mainly for it's phonetics. LOUCHE is pronounced LOOSH. I am sure you will agree it is a yummy word, as you push your lips out in a slight pucker (almost for a kiss!) while pronouncing the "oo" sound. This word most definitely sounds like it's meaning, giving a sense of provocative danger lurking just around the corner.

WORDS OF THE WEEK:

So, here's a little section I'm going to fondly label WORDS OF THE WEEK. During the course of my short life, I have come across certain words that either annoy the hell out of me, or make my heart sing with pleasure as they pass through my lips. For the most part, the feelings of either severe annoyance or pleasure have little to do with the actual meaning of the word alone, and more to do with the sound of the word as it relates to its meaning.

So, for this week:

- very, VERY annoying word: GARGANTUAN
(...needs no explanation, really.)

- sensuously pleasureful word: VAPID (c'mon. try it. say VAPID out loud. now, try it again, except this time drop your voice an octave, makeing it sound as smokey and sexy as possible, and over-pronounce the V and the D. nice, yeah?)

I realize it's Thursday, and therefore not the beginning of the week. But bear with me. I might just start a fresh, new WORDS OF THE WEEK on Sunday or Monday.